GREENFIELD, Ohio — A Paint Creek Joint EMS & Fire District firefighter was pulled into a storm culvert and carried 179 feet through the pipe Saturday evening while crews responded to flash flooding in Greenfield, the district said.
The firefighter was pulled into the culvert about 6:51 p.m. while members of the district were on the scene of flooding in the area of 200 N. 11th St., the district said in a Facebook post. He was swept through the pipe and emerged on the other side, sustaining what the district described as minor injuries.
Crews treated the firefighter at the scene before he was taken to a hospital emergency room for further evaluation. The district said he is expected to be discharged and sent home.
“While we are excited about the outcome, we are concerned as to how this happened,” the district said in its post. The department said it will review the incident and work on solutions to prevent it from happening again. It also thanked those who assisted during the incident and the many people who reached out afterward to check on its crews.
The firefighter’s close call came as Greenfield dealt with severe flash flooding Saturday after more than 7 inches of rain fell on the village, prompting a flash flood warning from the National Weather Service and sending village crews out to clear storm drains across town. Paint Creek Joint EMS & Fire District covers more than 360 square miles across Highland, Ross and Fayette counties, operating three stations that are staffed primarily by volunteer firefighters supplemented by career personnel.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Paint Creek Joint EMS & Fire District.
